Confessions of A Teenage Sorceress
by Bailey Elizabeth Parker
Summary: Merlin finds a girl, alone in an alley without gloves or a winter coat. She is a sorceress, to Merlin's utter disbelief. Merlin adopts the girl and teaches her all he knows. But once she gets into high school, she meets and befriends a boy who looks exactly like Arthur, even the teeth and the smile. Could this be Arthur himself? Is Albion in its time of need?
1. Chapter 1

He found me alone in an alley, without gloves or a winter coat. His hair was like a raven's wing and his eyes like the deep, blue ocean. He kneels by me.

"What's wrong?" He asks, taking his coat and wrapping it around my shoulders. "I'm a monster." I whisper. "No, you're not." He says. "I have magic. That makes me a monster."

"You have magic?" He asks. I nod. He smiles. "Watch this." He cups his hands and utters an enchantment. A blue, glowing butterfly flutters from his hands and flies to the rooftops. I stare in wonder. "What's your name?" He asks. "I'm Eleanor." I reply.

He smiles. "I'm Merlin." He says. "Like in that legend?" He shrugs. "Yep." He replies with a pop of his lips. "You don't look old." He shakes his head, laughing. "I can be sometimes."

"Come on." He says, standing up and holding out his hand. I take it and smile. He helps me up. "I'll take you home."


	2. Chapter 2

Merlin took me home to a little house by a lake. In the middle of the lake, there was a small island with a big tower on it. He looked at it longingly. "Merlin?" I say. He shakes his head, as if coming out of a trance. "Sorry." He smiles at me and walks into the house.

Merlin taught me everything he knew. He taught me how to make a butterfly, how to unlock doors, how to see things you couldn't see with the naked eye, he taught me how to use my powers for good. "I've seen magic corrupt so many," He'd say. "I don't want that to happen to you, Eleanor."

Once I had turned 14, Merlin decided I was ready to go to school. We sat in the principal's office, filling out the paperwork. "What's your daughter's name again?" She asks Merlin. "Eleanor Abernathy." I answer. She shoots me a look. "What is your name?" She asks. "I'm Emrys Abernathy."

The principal raises an eyebrow. "It-it's Welsh." He flashes her another one of his cheeky, toothy grins. "Uh-huh," She says, scribbling on the forms. "So I'll have one of our students be a sort of, chaperone, if you will. Show her to her classes, the dos and don'ts, that sort of thing." "Sounds good." Merlin says. "All right then."

The principal picks up the phone on her desk and dials a number. She's silent for a moment. "Yes, Mrs. Finch? Hi. Could I see Arthur Nathanson in my office for a second?" She's silent for a moment. "All right. Thank you."

"Well, Mr. Abernathy, you are free to go. Your daughter is in safe hands." Merlin nods and shakes her hand. "You know," She says. "You look quite young to be her father." Merlin chuckles. "I get that a lot." The principal nods.

"Be careful." He says, walking over to me and kissing my cheek. "I will." He walks out the door. He looks through the glass and gives me a small wave. I smile and wave back. He leaves.

I sit in her office for about two more minutes until a tall boy with sandy blonde hair and bright blue eyes walks in. "You wanted to see me, Dr. Shilling?" He asks. "Yes, Arthur, this is our new student, Eleanor Abernathy." She gestures to me. I stand up. He smiles at me. "I'm Arthur Nathanson."

I was a bit dumb-founded. All I could get out was: "Hiiiii," "You two have the same schedule and I was wondering if you could show her around, give her the dos and don'ts." "No problem. I'd love to." "Thank you, Arthur. You restore my faith in humanity."

There was an awkward silence hanging above our heads. Arthur clears his throat. "Well, we'd better get going." "Yes. Thank you, Arthur."

We were walking down the hallway. Arthur kept pace with me. But I could tell it was starting to bother him, considering I walk slow and take in the view. "So, we have world history with Mrs. Finch first. Her class is _so_ easy. And she doesn't notice if you're texting or Tweeting." He chuckles. _Tweeting?_

I laugh along, no idea what this "Tweeting" was. "So, Eleanor, tell me about yourself. Where are you from?" "Sussex." I answer, following Merlin's instructions. Arthur nods. "Nice. Me? I've lived here my whole life." "Really? Bet you're tired of it, huh?"

Arthur shakes his head. "No. Not really. This town surprises me sometimes. There was something about that lake at the edge of town. With the island and the tower in the middle of it?"

"Yeah. I live right by there." "Me too. I don't remember any moving trucks." I cursed under my breath. Merlin didn't have an excuse for that. "We moved in during the fall holiday."

"Oh, OK. Yeah. I was in London with my uncle then." I let out a sigh of relief. Arthur stops at a door. "This is it." I nod. "All right. Cool."

Arthur opens the door. "Oh! A new student! I wasn't told of a new student." I walk up to her. "I'm Eleanor Abernathy." I hold out my hand and smile. Mrs. Finch shakes my hand hesitantly. "Have a seat by Arthur, then."

I sit down by Arthur. He smiles at me. That smile…

There was something familiar about it.

_Something…_


	3. Chapter 3

A few months later, I was having Arthur over so we could work on our world history project. "Arthur?" Merlin asks. "Yeah, he was my chaperone my first day. We're really good friends now." Merlin smiles and nods. "Good."

The doorbell rings. "That'll be him." I say, skipping to the door. "Hey, Arthur." "Elle!" He says, smiling. I loved when he called me Elle. "Elle?" Merlin says, walking out to the foyer, carrying a bowl of popcorn. He sees Arthur and drops it, agape.

"Dad!" I yell, slightly annoyed. "Sorry, I don't know what came over me." He replies, picking up the popcorn. "I'll help Mr. Abernathy." Arthur helps pick up the popcorn. "You must be Arthur." He says. "That's me." Merlin takes the bowl and sets it on the table. "Thanks for coming." He says, holding out his hand.

"Thanks for having me." Arthur says, shaking Merlin's hand. "So, I hear you two are learning about the Middle Ages in world history." Merlin says. "We are. That's what our project is on." Merlin nods. "What will you be doing?"

"That's what we're trying to figure out." I say. "We were hoping you could help us with that. Elle tells me you're quite the expert on the Middle Ages." "Yes, Eleanor is true." Merlin says through gritted teeth. "It's almost like I lived it." "We were talking about Arthur and his knights." "And Merlin." I chime in. "Let's not forget Merlin."

"Yeah." Arthur says. "Sorry." "It's fine. I'll make some more popcorn if you like." "That'd be great, thanks, Dad." I reply. Merlin walks into the kitchen. "Tell us more about Merlin, Mr. Abernathy." Arthur says, following him into the kitchen.

"He did a lot for Arthur, but never wanted any credit. Anything for Arthur." He replies, popping the popcorn. "So tell us about the whole Sword in the Stone thing."

"Ah," Merlin says, chuckling. "That is actually historically inaccurate. Arthur was born a prince, and Merlin was his manservant. Back then, magic was banished from the land by his father, Uther Pendragon's decree 20 years before. Merlin had magic, obviously, but he had to keep it secret."

"Did Arthur ever find out?" Arthur asks. I bite my lip. Merlin pauses, tapping the countertop. "Arthur had been wounded in battle by Mordred. Merlin tried his best to save Arthur, but as he was dying, he told him." He presses his lips together like he does whenever he talks about Arthur.

"They had some good times, though. Fighting monsters, going on quests, the awkward conversations, the insults and the fights." Arthur sighs. "That's too bad he died. I can't imagine how Merlin felt."

Merlin nods. "Me neither."


	4. Chapter 4

"So," Merlin says after a long silence, setting the bowl of popcorn on the table in front of us. "What were you thinking for your project?" "We were thinking of something like a re-enactment." Arthur says. "Elle was saying that we could re-enact when Arthur pulls the sword from the stone." "_Eleanor_." He grumbled under his breath. "That was a pretty good day for Arthur."

"How did it really go? Since apparently everything we were taught all year is wrong." "No, that part was about right. Arthur was older, and all his knights and Merlin were present to see him pull the sword from the stone." "Could you play Merlin…" I caught myself, trying to remember to say Dad. "Dad?"

"Oh, yeah, of course." "You do realise that you'll have to play an old man?" "I've got that covered. I know a guy." Merlin replies with a smirk. "Great. We'll need to rehearse. Who's going to play the knights?" Arthur asks. "We could cut that part." I say. "We should do it right." "No, it's fine. Eleanor is right."

"So, who is Elle going to play?" Merlin purses his lips, tapping his fingertips on the counter the way he did when he was put off. "We could change it a bit and have her be the Lady of the Lake." I shrug. "Fine with me." I gasp. "I have the _perfect_ dress!" I clap my hands in excitement. Not sure why…

A car horn honked. "That'll be my Mum." Arthur says, shrugging his backpack on his shoulder. "Thanks for having me, Mr. Abernathy. See you tomorrow, Elle." He walks out the door.

"Does everyone call you Elle?" Merlin asks leaning against the wall, arms folded. "No. Only Arthur." Merlin pressed his lips together. "It's just a little nickname, Merlin. It's not like he's proposing or anything." "Yet." He mumbles. "What's wrong with him? He's nice, smart, devoted."

"I know. It's just… he looks _exactly_ like Arthur. Even the teeth and the smile. That's not possible. I would've known if Arthur came back." "I heard a rumor that Arthur was born right out on that lake in a boat." Merlin's eyes widen. "What?" "It was just a rumor, it may not be true."

Merlin eyes shine the way they did when he was thinking. "I guess Arthur has come back. Just not the way I was expecting."


	5. Chapter 5

The day of the presentation came along and Merlin had taken the ageing potion. Arthur looked at him and started laughing. "Is that _you_ Mr. Abernathy?" He asked, laughing harder when Merlin nodded.

Mrs. Finch gave us a glare. "We will now hear from Eleanor and Arthur." The class applauded. Merlin and Arthur stood before the class as I fled to the corner, waiting for my cue.

I smoothed down my watery gray dress. It was made from bolts of silk and flowed around my feet. My hair was damp and messy, like always. "Come along, Merlin." Arthur said, beckoning him with a wave of his hand. Merlin hobbled over. "What's that over there?" Merlin asks in his old man voice.

I walk up with the sword in hand. "I am the Lady of the Lake. You, King Arthur, are destined for great things. I present you the sword Excalibur." I hold out the toy sword and Arthur took it.

The sword glowed in Arthur's hand. Merlin grins. "It's him! It's really him!" Arthur looks at him. "What do you mean?" He asks. The sword glowed brighter. "_You_ are King Arthur."

Arthur looked at the sword in his hand as the room was bathed in white light.

When the light dimmed, Arthur was taller, broader. He looks around. "Where am I?" I see Merlin getting out the antidote for the ageing potion. Arthur turns around. His face lit up. "Merlin!" Merlin's eyes sparkled with tears.

They hug each other. "Where are we? More importantly, _when _are we?" "Well, we're in the 21st century. Thursday, March 13th, 2014." Arthur's eyebrows raised. "Huh," He said, eyebrows knit. "Wouldn't that mean you're 600 years old?"

"Yeah," Merlin says, shrugging. The class stared, agape. "_Merlin_ is your father?" A kid cried. "You have a daughter? Who in their right mind would marry _you?_" "Thanks, Arthur, but I adopted her. She has magic." Arthur nodded. "Hmm, nice." He turns to me. "King Arthur," He says, holding out his hand. "Eleanor," I reply shaking it. He looks at me, confused. "What was that?" He asks. "A hand shake. That's the proper greeting here in the 21st century."

"This is quite a strange place," He says, looking around. "Well, Merlin, looks like we have a bit of catching up to do."


End file.
